Page 107 of Every Single Broken Piece
Sheriff Williams nods. “That’s not a problem. You folks try to enjoy the holidays.”
“Thank you, Sheriff,” Kelcie murmurs. “You too.”
When he walks away, I shut the passenger door and jog around the truck before I climb in behind the steering wheel.
Kelcie
I can’t believe what happened.
My mind is reeling as Levi ushers me into the motel room. When we drove away from the crime scene, Levi mentioned neither of us hadany clothes at my family home. He let Sheriff Williams know where we’ll be staying tonight.
I’m only half aware that he shuts the door behind us and locks it.
Lick pads over to her spot in front of the bed and lies down, and following her, I crouch so I can brush my hand over her head.
I hear Levi switch on the faucets in the shower and watch as he moves around the room, gathering clean clothes for us. He takes it all to the bathroom before coming back and holding out his hand to me. “Come, my muse. Let me get you cleaned up.”
I place my palm in Levi’s and let him help me to my feet, then follow him into the bathroom, where he removes my coat before pulling my sweater over my head.
He continues to undress me, then gets rid of his own clothes, and as he tugs me into the shower, my eyes remain locked on his face.
Levi begins to wash my body, and as I feel his hands move over my skin, it erases some of the shock I suffered today. His gentle touch is soothing, but then I notice a muscle jumping in his jaw.
“Are you okay?” I whisper.
“I just need to erase his touch from your body,” he says.
“It feels good,” I tell him in a soft tone. Levi’s eyes flick to mine, and I quickly add, “Having your hands on me.”
When he’s done washing me, he moves in behind me and shampoos my hair. After he’s worked conditioner into the strands, his fingers massage my scalp, and my eyes drift closed from how comforting it feels.
Levi rinses my hair until the water runs clean, then I finally get my turn to wash his body. I give him the same love he showed me, and I’m careful when I clean his bruised knuckles.
We get out of the shower, and Levi dries us. Once I’m done getting dressed, I walk to the doorway, just wanting to crawl into bed.
“Hold up. I’m not done yet.” He grips my hand and pulls me toward the counter.
Picking up the brush, he gently works all the knots out of my strands, then he pulls a hair dryer out of a drawer and plugs it in.
God. This man is everything.
Watching Levi in the mirror as he takes care of me erases some of the trauma I was forced to endure today, and the corner of my mouth lifts.
His eyes lock with mine every few seconds, and I swear I fall in love with him all over again.
“Feeling any better?” he asks as he switches off the hair dryer and sets it down on the counter.
“Much. You have a miracle touch that has a way of soothing me.”
“Yeah?” He places his arms around me, and keeping eye contact with me in the mirror, he kisses the red handprint on my cheek.
“Thank you for saving me, Levi,” I whisper.
“Lick did most of the saving.”
I shake my head to silence him. “Thank you for coming to Verona and moving in next door to me. Thank you for talking to me and becoming my friend.” My eyes tear up, and my voice grows hoarse as I continue, “Thank you for giving in and loving me.” I turn around so we can be face-to-face as I say, “You saved me in so many ways. Mentally. Emotionally. Physically. You brought me back to life.”
Emotion fills his hazel eyes, and he rubs his palms up and down my arms while he takes in every inch of me, as if he needs to keep checking I’m really okay after the attack.
